"Pirates's Cove" ACEO 2.5x3.5"

It was 45 degrees last night...and 6 degrees this morning. A beach scene felt in order....

"Davis Brewing" 16x20 Acrylic on Canvas Study

This study is based on a painting from a book and is focused on achieving transparency in glass and 3D renderings of letters. The key is using subtle value changes to indicate highlights.

Evening At Walden Pond 16x20 Oil on Canvas

Walden by Thoreau is my favorite book and I love the setting and seasons you get at Walden Pond. I used water miscible oils to create this.

Old Farm Road 2.5"x3.5" ACEO

I thought I'd try another ACEO. Despite the size I find that these take longer than you might think to complete.

Saguaro Sunset 16x20 Oil on Canvas

I went to school in Arizona; the University of Arizona. I have always loved the desert, particularly in the spring when it really came alive after spring rains. Here's a somewhat idealized 16x20 oil on canvas portrayal of an area just outside Tucson. Saguaro

Hidden Waterfall 16x20 Oil On Canvas

I thought I'd try something a little more impressionistic today. I worked with water miscible oils , wet on wet to create this deep forest scene. I attempted to work in some wild azaleas down at the base of the waterfall.

"Paradise Beach" 16x20 Acrylic On Canvas

Enough snow for now! Here's a beach scene created from my "yearning for sun" imagination. Getting the water the color I wanted took some doing; hookers green, ultramarine blue, and white.

"The Davis House" 16x20 Acrylic on Canvas

I wanted to try a winter night scene so worked from a photo of my house after a recent snowstorm. I started with a black gessoed canvas and worked from there. Because of the number of snow covered trees in the background I used a double-loaded liner brush to show the snow and highlights vs. a palette knife. I indicated falling snow by flicked diluted titanium white off a toothbrush.

ACEO Hidden Waterfall 2.5x3" Canvas Card

Well, I thought I'd try something different today and paint an ACEO. Ironically, at least to me, I found painting "small" harder than painting on a larger support. It's a little like writing; it's much harder to keep it short and effective than long. Even simple things like determining how to use my easel to hold the ACEO card was a challenge. (I ended up cutting a "holder" slot in a 16x20 piece of feather-weight board...it worked just fine)

Sold The Winter Walk 16x20 Acrylic on Canvas

Sold

Here's a study I did from an old Chrismas Card I had lying around. I started with a black canvas and worked my way from dark to light from there. This is done in acrylics. I think the snow and shadows came out pretty well. I used super heavy body acrylics and a palette knife to do the trees. Available For Sale-$75

Mountain Splendor 16x20 Oil On Canvas

It's snowing today in Ann Arbor so I thought I'd try a snow scene based on an old photo I had lying around. This one is done in water miscible oil, a medium I find really challenging. Acrylics, at least for me, are the equivalent of a pencil with an eraser. Oils are more like writing with a fountain pen; much tougher to fix mistakes. I really like the deep colors you get with oils. I'm sure the same impact can be achieved with acrylics but I'm still working on that. I used a palette knife to do the mountains and brushes for the other parts of the painting.
Available For Sale-$100

SOLD "Mountain Rhododendrons" Trying Something New. Impasto texturing in acrylic. 16x20 Acrylic on canvas.

SOLD
Yesterday I painted a snow scene reflective of the weather here in Ann Arbor. Today I tried something different. "Mountain" Rhododendrons" is a study in establishing value planes and in attempting to work some real texture into a painting using acrylics. I think I accomplished both objectives. In this 16x20 study on stretched canvas I used Liquitex heavy body acrylics for most of the painting and Super Heavy Body acrylics for the rhododendrons. I applied the Super Heavy Body paint with a palette knife and a prayer and, with some tweaking, pretty much got the results I'd envisioned. Available for Sale- $75

Ann Arbor Sun...well not so much in the winter but we do get snow! 16x20 Acrylic on Canvas

I live in Ann Arbor near Stonebridge Golf Club. We recently had a very heavy snow and I was able to capture some great photos that I brought back to the studio to paint. It was one of those winter storms that start right when the temperature is right around freezing so the snow sticks to everything. Available for Sale- $75